


Onyx

by vampiricrose



Category: Ensemble Stars! (Video Game)
Genre: Accidental Confession, I love you Mao, Light Angst, M/M, Nail Polish, Self Confidence Issues, Sleeping Together
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-05-07
Updated: 2019-05-07
Packaged: 2020-02-27 22:11:29
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,651
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18748111
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/vampiricrose/pseuds/vampiricrose
Summary: Ritsu and Mao exchange few words over a bottle of nail polish, and the words Mao said when he thought Ritsu wasn't listening.





	Onyx

**Author's Note:**

  * For [eyler](https://archiveofourown.org/users/eyler/gifts).



> this is really bad but i still wrote it anyway.  
> enjoy the nail polish + sad mao + gay rtmos
> 
> I just realized that it sounded like they were together at the beginning but no they were like no homoing it so

Occasionally, Ritsu and Mao held hands on their way home. It was a rare treat they both indulged in, as they knew they couldn’t be as public in how far their friendship went as they’d like, so they only did it when they were walking home in the dark.  
It was a Sunday evening, and the pair were walking home. From where, it wasn’t important, as they didn’t really have a location in mind, they just wanted to spend some time together, as Mao’s workload had increased so the small moments they had together they decided to cherish.  
  
“Huh? Ritsu, your nails…” Mao said, breaking the comfortable silence the two had. Despite the darkness around them, the light glow from the streetlights made the black creme on his nails shine. “Ah, these?” Ritsu says, momentarily breaking their handlock, looking down at the shining nail polish. “Nacchan said that I should try it. Apparently, it suits me.”  Mao tilted his head a bit, it was new… but he won’t deny, Ritsu suits the black nails.  
“Does Maakun like them?” He asked, grasping Mao’s hand again, and the slight cold the two had gathered from the brief lack of each others touch was quickly warmed back up.  
Mao hummed, his puffs of breath visible in the cold, and then nodded. “They’re nice. Did you paint them yourself?”  
“Mhm… Secchan had some nail polish I could use, and he gave me it to borrow, so I did it last night…”  
“Didn’t think you’d have the attention span to do that.”  
Ritsu flicked the back of his head for that, but laughed lightly regardless.  
  
When they got back to Ritsu’s house, which was pleasantly warm due to the presence of the heater they turned on before they left, Mao could see the nails more. They were neat, which was surprising considered the sloppiness of Ritsu’s other efforts in things. The black of the polish contrasted nicely with the pale, almost white, skin Ritsu had.  
His eyes stayed on the black, as he shrugged off his jacket.  
“Mmm, Maakun, you know I could paint your nails too, you know?”  
Mao jumped and blushed when he realised Ritsu had caught his staring, though he doesn’t think that it’s something _too_ bad he could’ve been caught staring at, but he still was embarrassed.  
“You can?”  
“If I can paint mine, I can paint yours. Have you ever had your nails painted?” Ritsu asked, grasping Mao’s hand again.  
“I think my sister used to paint my nails back when we were younger, but… not since then.”  
“Want me to paint them?”  
Mao thought about it for a second. They did look nice, and black goes well with everything… so…  
“Sure.”  
  
Ritsu really had this planned out, didn’t he? The two were sitting on the floor in Ritsu’s room, a paper towel beneath Mao’s hand, to avoid getting nail polish on the carpet. The first stroke down his hand shocked him a bit, it was colder than he expected. It was quite relaxing after a while, and the occasional words between the two were comforting. If he really focuses, he can hear Ritsu lightly humming. He can’t recall the song, exactly… Oh, wait, it’s his solo, right? Mayonaka no Nocturne?  
He remembers when he first heard it, the piano at the beginning making him realise it was Ritsu’s solo… and his heart jumped when he heard the first syllable.  
The voice he’s heard Ritsu use so many times, the sultry, sly voice being used in a song did things to him, his stomach jumping.

“Maakun’s heartbeat increased,” Ritsu says, eyes slowly looking up meet with Mao’s. The statement made Mao panic for a moment, before he realises, it’s _Ritsu_ he’s dealing with, who is known for his habit of knowing what blood smells like, and can hear heartbeats from far away.  
He blushed, and looked awkwardly back to his nails. His right hand was finished, his left hand still drying from the first coat. Ritsu’s hand stuttered briefly, “What were you thinking about?”  
“Hm..?”  
Ritsu looked back down to the nails, the dark, almost threatening colour of Mao’s nails being a sort of comfort for him, before saying, “Peoples heartbeats only increase that much when they’re thinking about something they like, or if they’re in a life threatening situation. I don’t think you’re in a life threatening situation, so…” His eyes slid back up to match Mao’s, “What was it?”  
“Oh, it’s… nothing.”  
“Mmm?” Ritsu purred, obviously not going to let this go. Though, what did Mao expect, exactly?  
Mao sighed, tensing and untensing his fingers a bit, the urge to wring them almost unbearable, before half-heartedly saying, “Fine, fine. It was about you.”  
“Aww..~ Maakun thinks of me so highly.”  
“Oi, get your head out of the gutter.”  
“Mmm? What about me exactly, then?”  
Jeez… Mao really couldn’t win against Ritsu.

“You were humming your solo, right?” Mao began, Ritsu’s eyebrows perking up in curiosity, focusing back down on the nails needing a second coat. “It made me remember the first time I heard it.”  
Ritsu hummed a little, it definitely wasn’t his best performance. He remembers his voice being shaky, the fear of the emotions he was spilling in song to be misinterpreted, twisted, or ignored, overwhelming his conscience.  
Though, when it was over, and he felt the fruits of his labour, the applause around him giving him a moment to catch his breath, he had never felt so proud of himself.  
He decided there and then, that even if Mao didn’t express the same feelings, or if Mao didn’t realise what the song was about, that it would be worth it in the end.  
“Do you like the song?”  
“Huh..? Of course…”  
“ _Then why didn’t you realise it was about you?_ ” Ritsu thinks, a pout twisting onto his features.  
“Ritsu? Heey, Ritchan?”  
“Ah..? Oh, Maakun, sorry… I dazed out a bit.”  
“Are you tired?” Mao asked, his voice gentle, putting a palm of his hand onto Ritsu’s forehead, instinctively checking if the boy is okay.  
“I’m fine,” Ritsu huffed out, shaking his head a little to regain his focus. “Anyway, the nails are done and dried,” Mao looked at them, they were neat, a great contrast to RItsu’s normally sloppy work he does.

  
“Hey, Ritchan,” Mao asked, while Ritsu was putting the nail polish away, “Can I spend the night here?”  
Ritsu peered over, expecting an explanation, and Mao obliged, “I’m already here, right? Plus, I haven’t spent the night here for a while.”  
“Mmm? Am I just that irresistible, Maakun?”  
“Oh, shush, you.” Mao said, flicking Ritsu’s forehead, momentarily being shocked at the dark colour of his nails. God, it’s gonna take him a while to get used to that, isn’t it?  
Ritsu nodded, “You can stay. Anija’s out, probably all night.”  
Mao grinned. “Alright, is it okay if I run to my house real quick, so I can get some clothes for tomorrow?”  
“Mmm, sure. Just don’t take awhile… I get lonely, Maakun.~”  
  
Mao walked the short distance between their houses, stuffing a spare uniform and some clothes he could wear as pajamas into his schoolbag, pushing against the work he already had in there, all completed. God, he almost forgot he had school tomorrow… He used to not understand Ritsu’s dislike for school, but now, he thinks he’d rather sit in that comfortable silence with Ritsu more than anything else.  
  
“Ritchan, hey, I’m back!” Mao announced, walking in. He heard a few stumbles from upstairs, signifying Ritsu was still awake, which, now that he thinks about it more, is something he normally shouldn’t have to worry about with any other of his friends. He sprinted up the stairs after kicking his shoes off at the door, and peered into Ritsu’s room to see none other than the self-proclaimed vampire curled up on his bed, half asleep.  
“Jeez, you couldn’t wait for me..?” Mao half-heartedly complained, patting Ritsu’s head. Of course, Ritsu moved into the touch, despite his previously mentioned distaste of touch. Though, Mao doesn’t know what he expected, exactly.  
“Mmm, good morning, Maakun.”  
“Nope, it’s, uh…” Mao quickly whipped his head around to look at his phone, before stating, “It’s 10pm. We’re off to sleep.”  
Ritsu hummed in acknowledgement, eyes fluttering closed as Mao pulled his hand away to walk off to the bathroom, getting changed into some pajamas.  
  
Mao slid under the cover, Ritsu fully curled up already. The slight noises he made and the gentle, shallow breathing were the only things he could hear, but it wasn’t something he disliked. In fact… he liked it, it calmed him quite a lot.  
“You know, Ritchan…” Mao began, as the boy next to him shuffled to get closer, “Sometimes I wish I could read you better… It’s not as if I can’t read you, I know I can do it well, but… you tell me you love me a lot, but I never understand… how could you like someone as basic as _me_ ? You have… many better options.”  
His breath became shaky. Though he felt these things, admitting it to himself, and saying it out loud was a lot more painful than he expected. “I just wish you were honest with me, or just more honest with yourself, at least… I just wanna know if you love me, so I know if to get over my feelings, or if I should let them flourish.”  
Mao faced him, brushing his hand against Ritsu’s cheek, before he hoarsely whispered, “I love you, Ritchan.”  
“Maakun.”  
The quiet voice from Ritsu made Mao jump, confused and startled at the acknowledgement. “Wait… how long have you been awake..?!”  
“I heard it,” Ritsu bluntly said, sitting up. “All of it, Maakun.”  
Mao’s first instinct was to get out of there, apologise, do _anything_ , but whatever he could do was quickly cut off by Ritsu’s words,  
“I love you too.”


End file.
